Biomass as Feedstock for Biofuel

Indianapolis, IN

Second-generation biofuel is a relatively new subsection of biofuel technology that is derived from non-food sources. The feedstock consists of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Cellulose is the most abundant organic material on Earth, and, in the hemiacetal form, has the potential to be a renewable source for energy and chemicals. Treatment of lignocellulosic biomass gives rise to simple sugars, which are more readily fermentable into bioethanol. This process, however, poses a challenge due to not only the crystalline structure of cellulose, but also the protective lignin barriers that surround it. Ionic liquids consisting of strongly electronegative anions, such as bisulfate, acetate, and triflate, show promise as cellulose solvents because they disrupt the lignocellulosic network and enable its dissolution. We explored the microwave-assisted digestion of biomass in the presence of triethylammonium triflate, trifluroacetate, triethylammonium hydrogen sulfate, triethylammonium acetate, pyridium chloride, and pyridium bromide. We quantified the yield of glucose by reacting with Benedict’s solution and measuring absorbance via UV-Vis Spectroscopy. We concluded that triethylammonium hydrogen sulfate and triethylammonium triflate both yield significant amounts of fermentable sugars.